The Las Vegas Raiders were widely expected to draft a quarterback early in the 2025 NFL draft, but things changed drastically after the Geno Smith trade.
The Raiders made the aggressive move to trade for Smith in a deal that saw Las Vegas send the Seattle Seahawks a third-round pick earlier this offseason.
Las Vegas then turned around and handed Smith a two-year, $75 million contract extension that runs through 2027 but has an out after 2026.
“With Geno in particular, Pete has a history with him, and he’s played his best football under Pete,” Spytek said on 3 and out with John Middlekauff. “He played well last year, too. A third-round pick and a two-year, $75 million commitment, that’s not a nothing pick. That’s real.”
Before trading for Smith, the Raiders left no stone unturned when it came to trying to find a new quarterback.
Spytek admits that the team made several calls to teams to inquire about trades, and he also noted that he would be “embarrassed” if people knew about some of the signal-callers he asked about.
“Remember that opening press conference? Feels like two years ago now,” Spytek said. “Pete [Carroll] and I weren’t just blowing smoke. We meant it when we said we’d look ‘everywhere’ for a quarterback.
“We called teams just to see. I’d be embarrassed to tell you some of the players we probably called and asked to trade for, but you just never know,” he added.
Spytek didn’t name names, but it’s at least good to see he explored any and every avenue to improve what was Las Vegas’ biggest weakness.
While Smith doesn’t guarantee a Super Bowl or even a playoff appearance, he remains a significant upgrade over Aidan O’Connell and Gardner Minshew following his career revival in Seattle.
Along with his superior talent, Smith also brings intangibles, like worth ethic and leadership.
“I really feel so fortunate that we were able to get that done,” head coach Pete Carroll said of the trade for Smith.
“To me, he’s just been emblematic of what a leader should be, by his habits and by the way he brings himself every day. He’s the first guy out here. He’s the last guy to leave. It’s really important that he stands for what leadership is all about. And, he’s a good football player, too. He’s looked great in practice so far, I’m really excited about what he’s bringing.”
The Raiders badly needed to stabilize the franchise after undergoing changes far too often in recent years. The hires of Carroll and Spytek, and the trade for Smith were great first steps to accomplishing that feat.
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